Announcement of Renewal for the Tower of David – Museum of the History of Jerusalem
Jerusalem Day 2017
Fifty years after the Israeli flag was first raised from the fortress walls of the Tower of David, and almost thirty years after the ancient citadel was opened as the Museum of the History of Jerusalem, the Tower of David Museum is planning a full Upgrade renewal project to modernize it for the 21st century. Located in the magnificently restored ancient citadel on the site that has guarded the entrance to the Old City forthousands of years, the Tower of David is the only museum in the world dedicated to the city of Jerusalem and tells the full story of the 4000 years of Jerusalem, past, present and future.
The Tower of David Museum uniquely combines innovative contemporary experiences with Jerusalem's rich and diverse past. Since it opened to the public in 1989, millions of people from Israel and all parts of the world have visited the Tower of David. The permanent exhibit on the history of Jerusalem, the temporary exhibitions, the Night Spectacular and original cultural and educational events have transformed the Tower of David – the symbol of the city – into a must see tourist site and cultural institution for anyone visiting the city.
EilatLieber, Director of the Tower of David Museum: “After a successful three decades, planning is currently underway for the full renewal of the existing museum. This upgrade will change the flow into the museum with a new entrance complex from the western side of the citadel, connected to Mamilla via the ancient Byzantine bath houses under the Jaffa Gate. These archaeological excavations have been neglected for more than 20 years and will now be restored and preserved in a new underground entrance to the Old City and the Tower of David Museum. The new entrance structure will create a tourist-cultural continuum from Mamilla to the Old City of Jerusalem. Included in the new complex will be a new educational wing to house the Museum’s Education Department which has worked successfully over the years to convey the history and the archeology of Jerusalem. There will be an increase in access to all exhibition rooms, archeological excavations and viewpoints; and include a complete renewal of the permanent exhibit. As part of the upgrade the Kishle excavations found in the prison compound from the period of the British Mandate will be incorporated into the museum complex. These excavations show the time line of Jerusalem from an impressive wall from the period of King Hezekiah during the First Temple period (800 BCE), the foundations of King Herod’s palace and water system from 2000 years ago, Crusader era dying pools, the Ottoman city walls of Jerusalem through modern times with vivid graffiti etched by Jewish resistance fighters on the prison walls.”
The renewalproject is expected to double the area of the Museum from 7895 sq. meters to 15,000 sq. meters with the permanent exhibition area doubling to almost 4000 sq. meters. The new exhibition will integrate innovative experiential and technological elements along with archaeological artefacts, manuscripts, Judaica, ancient maps, archive films and pictures.At present there are close to 400,000 visitors to the Tower of David on an annual basis. The extended area will thereby significantly increasing the number of people that can visit at any one time.
The vision for the renewal of the Museum of the History of Jerusalem at the Tower of David is being brought to fruition thanks to the generous support of the Clore Israel Foundation which enabled the current planning processwhich is due to be completed by December 2017. Subject to finalization of the plans and approval by all relevant authorities, the Clore Israel Foundation has earmarked a major donation to fund the renewal of the Tower of David Museum. The overall project is budgeted at more than $30 million
Partners and supporters of the renewal of the Tower of David Museum are the Jerusalem Municipality led by Mayor of Jerusalem and Head of the Board of the Tower of David Museum, MrNirBarkat, the Ministry of Jerusalem and Heritage headed by Minister Zev Elkin; the Ministry of Tourism headed by Minister YarivLevin and The Jerusalem Foundation.
The Clore Israel Foundation wasthe original lead donorto the Tower of David Museum and has supported the Museum generously throughout the last three decades.
The architecture firm Kimmel-Eshkolit has been chosen to design the project and the London based firm Pentagram will design the new exhibition space. The Israel Antiquities Authority, headed by Director Yisrael Hasson and Jerusalem District Archaeologist Dr. Yuval Baruch, will accompany the renewal through all of its phases. The museum will remain open to the public throughout the renovation work which is expected to take three years.
Jerusalem Mayor NirBarkat: “The Tower of David, the symbol of Jerusalem, embodies the connection between the Jewish People and Jerusalem. There has been an unbreakable bond from the time of King David who first conquered the city and made Jerusalem his capital till today when we celebrate 50 years since the reunification of Jerusalem. The Tower of David tells of our history in Jerusalem and is an essential stop where every visitor to Jerusalem can learn about our connection to the Land of Israel and to Jerusalem. The renewal of the Museum is a new layer in the development in the history of the Tower of David and Jerusalem.